Thibau Nys secured his first WorldTour victory on Stage 2 at the Tour de Romandie on a day that saw two puncheurs go head-to-head on a mountain top finish.
Nys’ disappointment after being boxed in at tje finish of Stage 1 turned into elation in Les Marécottes after an impressive display of strength from young Belgian on only his third race day of his 2024 road season.
Lidl-Trek had a plan going into the 171km-long stage and that was to have Nys in a strong breakaway and Nys was so strong himself today that is was the 21-year-old that forced the move, that eventually grew to be seven-riders strong, to go clear.
This was also a first, the first breakaway of Nys’ career so far and makes for a nice statistic, a 100 percent success rate of victories from an early move.
🫡🫡🫡#TDR2024 pic.twitter.com/wOGsuZkHGI
— Lidl-Trek (@LidlTrek) April 25, 2024
The group worked well together, they had a solid advantage going over the top of the Col des Mosses and as they reached the base of the final eight-kilometer climb, five riders remained in front with an advantage over two minutes.
The @thibau_nys4 breakaway reached the top of the Col des Mosses ☃️ with an advantage of 2’45” over the peloton.#TDR2024 📸 @GettySport pic.twitter.com/TecAgYJRAu
— Lidl-Trek (@LidlTrek) April 25, 2024
From there it was game on and the reduced bunch, with Tao Geoghegan Hart, Giulio Ciccone, Patrick Konrad and Sam Oomen sitting relaxed, started to apply the pressure.
With the gap down to around 30 seconds, Luke Plapp (Team Jayco AlUla) launched an attack that saw him bridge across to the leaders and draw Nys and Andrea Vendrame (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team) with him.
After a final hairpin bend with 200 meters to go, Nys, who had looked calm and composed in the final kilometers, knowing he was the fastest of the race, launched his sprint.
Nys’ stage win also secured him his third career-first of the day: a leader’s jersey at a WorldTour stage race.
Tappa e Maglia!
All the feels 😍
#TDR2024 You get a hug! You get a hug! Everybody gets a hug! pic.twitter.com/U0jaUEZWOS
— Lidl-Trek (@LidlTrek) April 25, 2024
Thibau’s Reaction
“I was so disappointed yesterday that I couldn’t show my good legs. We made a plan to go in the break if it was a strong one. I think I set up the break in the perfect moment. It was a group of pretty strong guys, I just tried to save as much energy as possible but I didn’t really know what to expect to be honest because it was the first time I’m in the breakaway in my career.
“Also I didn’t really know the last climb or the corners, so I must say a massive thanks to the team, they did a hell of a job to guide me in the last kilometers. I was surprised when Michi [Schär, Sports Director] told me there was a hairpin 200m to go, I almost missed it but it was just in time for me to make my sprint.
“It gets difficult if you think about it [that it’s your race to lose], that’s the moment when it can slip out of your hands. I tried to stay cool and not risk anything, then do everything at the right moment.
“I cannot describe this. For some people it might just look like a normal victory, but I wanted it so bad and I worked so hard for it. It was the first big goal of the season to be in good shape here. That’s one thing, and then to win it’s something else. I will remember this for the rest of my life.
“My TT is not good enough at the moment to keep the jersey, but I will enjoy my day in Yellow tomorrow and I will definitely sleep better than yesterday after today. I started my season three days ago and to be sitting here right now is better than I could ever dream of.”
